Scientology versus the Internet
| Scientology and the Internet | |||
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Counterclockwise from above: 1) Protest by an Internet group calling itself 'Anonymous' against the practices and tax status of the Church of Scientology, 2) Monument-style sign in front of the Founding Church of Scientology in Washington DC, 3) Screenshot of error message when attempting to load www.scientology.org on January 25, 2008.
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| Date | July 1994 – ongoing | ||
| Location | Internet, courts of law, worldwide protests | ||
| Methods | litigation, spam, street protests, prank calls, black faxes, denial of service attacks | ||
| Status | ongoing | ||
| Parties to the civil conflict | |||
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| Lead figures | |||
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alt.religion.scientology
Anonymous
Operation Clambake
Andreas Heldal-Lund
Mark Bunker
David Miscavige
Tom Cruise
John Travolta
Tommy Davis
There are a number of disputes concerning the Church of Scientology's attempts to suppress material critical of Scientology on the Internet, utilizing lawsuits and legal threats. In late 1994, the Church of Scientology began using various legal tactics to stop distribution of unpublished documents written by L. Ron Hubbard. The Church of Scientology is often accused of barratry through the filing of SLAPP suits. The official church response is that its litigious nature is solely to protect its copyrighted works and the unpublished status of certain documents.
Various critics of the Church of Scientology have characterized the organization as a confidence scam and claim that these secretive writings are proof, or allege that they contain evidence that the Church of Scientology's medical practices are illegal and fraudulent. Scientology has been convicted of fraud in the courts of several nations, although not those of the United States. Others have claimed that the Church of Scientology is abusing copyright law by launching lawsuits against outspoken critics.
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Wikipedia